Taking Up the Mantle
by Infinity Unit 13
Summary: The tales of the horseman War has always inspired Jaune. His master, Death, was always going on and on about his brother, before his untimely demise. Jaune wished to take up the mantle of War, but first, he must overcome this first obstacle. Becoming a Huntsman. And... maybe a few friends as well?
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Another new story!**

 **...yay.**

 **Nothing much else except for the fact that this idea has been eating away at me for a little bit, ever since I started replaying Darksiders. So, without further ado, here it is.**

* * *

There can be no life without order. Good, evil... darkness, light-there must be Balance in the Universe. That was what Jaune had been taught his whole childhood. That light cannot exist without darkness, and vise versa. Those that think that good always triumphs...

They are naive. This world is not all sunshine and rainbows. His master taught him that.

The only way to get what you want, is to earn it, or take it. His master taught him that.

His master taught him a lot of things, things that allowed him to survive life and death situations. Things that made people such as himself feared.

However, he was never taught anything that had to do with socializing. The only form of communication was between himself and his master, which, even then, was limited to short conversations and strict instructions. Sometimes, he talked to himself, imagining that there was another person with him.

Let it be known that Jaune literally had no friends.

So, as Jaune walked into the Bullhead that would take him to Beacon Academy, he cursed his master for not teaching him about social cues. Why couldn't he have at least mentioned how to talk with other people. Hell, his master didn't even allow him to buy a scroll, despite having the funds to do so. As he passed by a few of his other future classmates, Jaune heard talk of a champion of sorts. Jaune let a smile form on his face.

' _A champion, huh? I hope they are good. I have not had a good spar since I tried to take on Death in a sword match._ ' Jaune thought to himself. As he remembered the fight that he had with his master, Jaune smiled. Despite not being related, Jaune loved Death as if he were his father.

Suddenly, he bumped into someone, sending them to the ground. "Ah!" They exclaimed in surprise.

As soon as Jaune was snapped back to reality, he looked down at the person he had just knocked down. She had black hair that had red tips, and silver eyes that matched the silver rose buckle of her belt. She wore a sort of gothic style dress, along with a red cape. He held out a hand to her.

"I must apologize. I was thinking, and I did not see where I was walking." Jaune apologized, helping the girl up as she took his hand.

"Th-Thanks. I-It's fine." The girl replied. Jaune noted that her hand twitched towards the hood of her cape.

' _Habit, perhaps? Maybe I am making her nervous?_ ' Jaune thought.

Jaune's stomach lurched as the Bullhead began to move. Letting go of the girl's hand, he made a mad dash to the trash can on the other side of the ship. Jaune then, proceeded to empty his stomach of his lunch. With a groan, Jaune pulled himself away and steeled himself.

"I despiseair travel." Jaune muttered under his breath as he slid down the wall. He hung his head, examining his current wear. He wore one of his master's old outfits, which seemed to fit him just nicely. He had a grey and orange-red shoulder mount that had a gray hood, which was currently on, and shoulder pads which looked looked like the heads of a falcon, and a crescent piece attached to his back, which also held his massive sword. Underneath that, he wore a skin-tight, short-sleeve, thermal shirt, which was covered by a gray cowl that extended from his shoulder mount. On his arms, he wore his secondary weapons, the Fists of Elhazar, a deadly pair of clawed gauntlets he had received as a reward for eliminating a legendary Grimm called the Noss. Covering his entire midsection was an armor piece with staggered plates as well as a horse skull engraved on a metal plate on his stomach. Extending from the piece of armor were gray pieces of cloth that hung past his waist.

For bottoms, he wore his cuisses, which encased his entire thigh, and his shins were armored with thick, gray, metal sabatons over a pair of thick faded brown boots. Hanging on the sides of his waist, from a thick metal and leather belt with Death's horseman emblem as the buckle, were two scythes that used to belong to his master. Beithir's Talons were two, dual-wielded scythes made from the scavenged talons of an ancient, fire-class Nevermore, named Beithir. On his back, hung his sword, which did not have a sheathe. Carefully so as not to damage the wall behind him, he took out his sword and caressed the surface of the blade. Jaune carefully examined the ghoulish faces etched onto the blade. His sword, Chaoseater, was not really his.

It used to belong to Death's brother, War, before he fell in battle. Jaune always made sure to treat the blade with respect. Death used to tell Jaune tales of War's life. How he took down one of the most dangerous SS-Class dragon grimm, the Destroyer, and even killed a semi-sentient arachnid-class grimm, named Silitha. Jaune, despite his admiration for his master, wished to take up the mantle of War. He may have earned the blade, but he has yet to earn the name.

Out of the blue, a pair of red and black combat boots appeared in front of him. Looking up, Jaune saw that it was the girl that he had bumped into earlier. Without warning, or asking for permission, she sat down beside him, carefully so as not to cut herself on his blade.

"Hello." Jaune greeted, as he forced the bile back down his throat.

"H-Hi! I-I'm Ruby. R-Ruby Rose." She introduced herself, Jaune noting her stutter. Jaune gave chuckle as he compared her name to her clothes.

"Certainly fitting," Jaune commented, "however, my name is Jaune Arc. It ISO pleasure to meet you."

Ruby nodded with a smile and replied, "It's nice to meet you too!"

Jaune noticed that she was now staring at Chaoseater. "What's that?" She asked.

"My sword. Well, it is not really mine. It belonged to my master's brother, but he fell in battle, and it was passed to me." Jaune explained, looking down at the blade.

Ruby held out her hands and looked at him with a pleading expression. "M-May I see it?" She asked. Jaune smiled, and handed it to her, handle first. He smirked when he saw her face immediately go red from the blade's weight.

"It... It's... heavy..." Ruby managed to say through gritted teeth as she tried to lift the blade up. Jaune chuckled. Ruby let the blade rest on her leg, probably cutting off the limb's circulation, but her aura would deal with it. She gently touched the edge of the blade, before immediately pulling back as the blade dug into her flesh.

"That's really sharp," she commented, "isn't it dangerous to walk around with that not in a sheathe?"

Jaune shrugged. "It is how I normally carry it. However, people normally tend to stay their distance from me anyway." Jaune said. With a gesture of the hand, he pointed out to Ruby that, in fact, there was a wide circle of empty space from the two, the other students not wanting to be near Jaune.

Ruby turned to him. "But... doesn't that get lonely?" she asked, "not having people around you?"

Jaune shrugged again. "I would not really know. I never really had anybody else aside from my master."

Ruby frowned, and then a bright smile appeared on her face. "Then how about you become my friend?" She asked.

Jaune took Chaoseater off of her leg and returned it to it's place on his back. He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. He held out a hand, and gave her a smile.

"Sure. I would like that very much."

* * *

 **Beacon Academy Docks:Later...**

Jaune stretched as he exited the Bullhead. Next to him stood Ruby, gushing over seeing so many different weapons. One thing that Jaune had learned on the Bullhead, was that Ruby was an absolute weapon-nut. Suddenly, he saw Ruby get pulled backwards by the cape by a hand with a yellow bracelet. Turning to see who the arm belonged to, he saw a well-endowed girl with long blonde hair that ended at her... derrier. Jaune raised an eyebrow at the girl's hair length.

Ruby groaned, before she perked up, as if remembering something. "Ah, Jaune! This is my sister, Yang!" She said, gesturing to the blonde girl.

Yang held out a hand to him with a small, yet confident smirk. "Nice to meet ya' Jaune! I'm Yang, Yang Xiao Long." She introduced herself.

Jaune took her hand, though he rose an eyebrow when he felt her trying to squeeze his hand to a pulp. He applied his own pressure, and she watched as the girl nearly jerked her hand away from him, the only indication that she was in pain being the twitch of her eyebrow.

"It is... nice to meet you too... My name is Jaune Arc." He greeted, letting go of her hand. Yang sighed before shooting him an amused glance.

"Strong grip ya' got there." She commented.

"...Thank you?" More of a question than a statement, as Jaune was confused as to why she tried to crush his hand in the first place.

"So! Where to next?" Yang asked. There was a small beat of silence, the only noise being the footsteps and random conversations of nearby students, before Jaune spoke.

"I must be going, now." Jaune said, looking down at a piece of paper in his hands.

Ruby looked over his arm and saw that it was a letter from Ozpin.

"I am required to see the Headmaster, it seems." Jaune murmured. He turned to Ruby with an apologetic smile.

"I apologize that I have to leave Ruby, Yang. Perhaps we will meet up later?"

Ruby pouted, but nodded anyways.

"Yeah... sure." She said dejectedly.

"C'mon Rubes! Let's go find the auditorium!" Yang exclaimed as she dragged Ruby away.

Jaune sighed with a smile. What a weird friend he made.

* * *

Ruby watched helplessly as Yang dragged her towards the school.

"Yaaanng! I can walk by myself!" She cried out indignantly. Yang chuckled, but otherwise let her sister go.

"I'm gonna go see some friends. So, catch ya' in a jiff!" Yang yelled, before speeding away.

Ruby stumbled as she spun in place, before she finally fell backwards.

Right into a pile of suitcases.

"Ugh! You dolt! Watch where you're going!" A snobby voice said. Ruby lucked up and saw a white-haired girl in a white dress scowling at her. She had pale blue eyes that seemed to freeze Ruby on the spot.

"I-I'm so s-sorry!" Ruby cried out.

"Do you have any idea what could have just happened?! This is Dust! Mined and refined by the SDC! We could have been blown off of this cliff!" The girl shouted.

"I-I'm s-sorry..." Ruby murmured. Suddenly, her nose began to itch. She looked up to see that the snobby girl was waving a vial in front of her, a bit of red Dust escaping into the air.

And right into Ruby's nose.

"Ah... Ah... ACHOO!"

* * *

 **Beacon Academy; Headmaster Ozpin's Office**

Jaune smiled when he opened the door to the headmaster's office. As he entered, he saw a chair spun around so that it was facing away from the door, and towards the window.

"So... you are still playing the cool villain?" Jaune prodded.

"I would recognize that voice anywhere, Jaune. Or should I say, Vomit-Boy?" A voice shot back. Turning around with a small smile, was a man with a messy mane of silver hair, and hazel eyes hidden behind small bifocals that balanced on the edge of the man's nose. He wore a simple vest and suit, with a green undershirt, and a green scarf wrapped around his neck.

Jaune rolled his eyes, but otherwise seemed to not take the jab too seriously.

"How have you been Oz?" He asked, dragging a chair backwards and taking a seat in front of Ozpin's office.

Ozpin shook his head. "Jaune, it's headmaster here. I can't have students suspecting me of favoritism, now can I?"

Jaune smirked. "But I am one of your favorites anyways, aren't I?"

Ozpin's smiled seemed to widen a little. "I suppose that's true. Though I doubt I would like a repeat of the fight at Vincent." Ozpin casually mentioned.

Jaune's smirk was wiped right off of his face, in favor of a playful scowl. "Hey, I thought you, Death, and I agreed to never speak of that?" He growled with a smile.

"Jaune, if there is one thing you should know about me, is that I-" Ozpin was cut off as a loud explosion occurred, lightly shaking the office.

With practiced ease, Jaune stood up, sending his chair backwards, and had Chaoseater in his hands within seconds. He was just about to jump out of the window when Ozpin grabbed his shoulder.

Jaune looked back over with a raised eyebrow, but saw what Ozpin was referring to. On Ozpin's terminal, there was a cloud of red Dust, surrounded by what looked like suitcases. When the Dust cleared, Jaune saw that inside was his recently-made friend, Ruby Rose. She was being yelled at by... a familiar girl dressed in white.

"Hey... is that Weiss Schnee?" Jaune asked. Ozpin nodded, but then a smirk made it's way to his mouth when he saw Jaune staring at her longer than necessary.

"Well, Jaune. There aren't any rules going _against_ relationships in this school, so go ahead!" Ozpin casually teased, taking a sip of his coffee afterwards.

Jaune turned his head slowly, before deadpanning at the silver-haired man. "Your humor is _oh so grand_ , headmaster. Truly it is."

Ozpin chuckled, and turned his chair to face the window once more. "Well. We can catch up later. In the meantime, why don't you check on Miss Rose?" Ozpin suggested, gesturing down below towards the crater that Ruby was still sitting in.

Jaune smiled and nodded. "Yeah. I'll go do that."

* * *

 **Beacon Academy; Front Courtyard:**

Ruby sighed dejectedly as the crabby girl in white left. "Welcome to Beacon..." She muttered to herself.

A pair of armored boots appeared in front of her. "Are you okay? That seemed rough. Do you need a hand?" A familiar voice asked. She looked up to find a smiling Jaune Arc with his hand held out to her.

She smiled in return, accepting the hand and pulling herself up. "Thanks Jaune. How'd the meeting with the headmaster go?"

He glanced at her. "It was surprisingly short. It was cut off by an explosion that seemed to have come from the courtyard. You wouldn't happen to know anything about it would you?" Jaune teased, a smile on his face as he looked at her in amusement.

Ruby flushed, before pulling the hood of her cape up. "Shut up." She mumbled, prompting Jaune to chuckle.

There was a moment of comfortable silence, the two walking side by side with each other. Jaune took this opportunity to start a conversation.

"So... I have shown you my weapon. Or rather, weapons. But I have yet to see yours." Jaune said as they stopped. Ruby's smile turned into a wide grin as she took out a red... something... from her back. Suddenly, it unfolded, revealing a large scythe that would probably even make Death a little envious. Jaune grinned at the thought of his master looking longingly at Ruby's scythe.

The blade of the scythe sunk into the ground. Jaune inspected the weapon, finding a trigger, bolt, magazine, and a barrel. The diameter of the barrel was pretty big.

"So... A scythe, huh? With an integrated .50 Cal. sniper I presume?" Jaune guessed. Ruby seemed to freeze.

When she didn't move for a few minutes, Jaune grew a tad worried. He waved a hand in front of her face.

"Ruby? Ruby, are you alright?" He asked. Ruby's head slowly turned to him, creeping him out in the process.

"Jaune..." She murmured.

A bead of sweat trickled down his face as he replied, "Y-Yes?"

There was a moment of silence.

And another...

And another...

Jaune was about to take off when Ruby disappeared. He looked around frantically, thinking that she was going to attack, when all of a sudden, a pair of arms wrapped around his right arm. He lifted up the limb to find Ruby hanging off of it like a monkey would a jungle gym.

"You're. The. BESTEST FRIEND I'VE EVER MADE!" She cried out, her legs kicking outwards.

"Wha...?"

"Nobody's ever guessed that my baby was a sniper before!" Ruby exclaimed.

"Um... Alright..." Jaune said, a little off-put by her behavior. Ruby let go of his arm, falling to the ground due to the height difference.

Ruby started talking about different weapons, meanwhile, Jaune did his best to try and listen to the girl's fast-paced speech pattern. Suddenly, she stopped speaking.

"Um... Jaune?"

"Yes?"

"...Where are we going?"

There was a beat of silence as the two looked around.

"...I have not the slightest clue."

* * *

 **Beacon Academy; Auditorium:**

After 30 minutes of searching for directions, they finally stumbled into the Auditorium, which was filled to the brim with students. A familiar boisterous voice shouted amongst the already noisy environment.

"Ruby!" Yang called, waving at said person, "Over here! I saved you a spot!"

Ruby sped towards her, before the two descended into a playful argument about how Yang had left Ruby. Jaune chuckled to himself.

"Where else am I to find a nice, quirky girl to talk to?" He said to himself, a smile on his face. Behind him, a red-haired girl with emerald green eyes, wearing bronze armor raised an eyebrow at the blonde Arc.

Jaune settled for sitting against the wall, ignoring everything around him. He took this time to play with his semblance a little. His semblance was the ability to turn his skin into stone, allowing him to absorb a lot more damage, and have a raging fire envelop his being, making it so that anyone who touches or attacks him will burn.

 **(A/N: If this ability sounds familiar to you, then it should be. It's a crossover between Immolation and Stoneskin, my two favorite wrath abilities aside from Blade Geyser.)**

Jaune let his hand turn to stone, watching in silent amusement as the flames danced along his palm. He was vaguely aware of Ozpin saying something, but otherwise was too preoccupied to care. It was only when students started to file out did he stop playing with his semblance and follow along. He then felt someone tap his shoulder. He turned around and found that it was Yang, who had her hand out, that had tapped him. Next to her stood Ruby.

"C'mon Jaune! Let's go explore!" Yang said, trying to drag him away, before Ruby stopped her.

"Yang, we have to put our stuff away first!" Ruby said, dragging Jaune the other way. Jaune stood in the middle, helpless as the two sisters pulled him in different directions. So, with a sigh, Jaune decided to take a page from Death's book. He split himself into two forms, one, a transparent, pale green version of him, and another purple version. The two cracked their knuckles in sync and looked back towards the two sisters.

"What?" The two Jaunes asked in unison.

"How the..."

"Wha..."

The two sisters could only gape, much to the Jaunes' amusement.

"Well, come on you two," the Jaunes said, each on pulling one of the sisters with them, "let us go and explore."

Ruby seemed to have locked up completely, literally having to be dragged by the arm, he legs sliding across the smooth tiles of Beacon Academy. Meanwhile, Yang didn't have it as bad.

She was still locked up, but at least she was able to walk. The two Jaunes chuckled at the same time.

* * *

 **With Green Jaune and Ruby:**

Jaune G. and Ruby stood in the locker room, the green aura construct waving his hand spectral hand in front of Ruby's face. "Ruby, are you alright?" He asked, poking her shoulder a bit.

Jaune G. sighed, before his gaze found a certain red scythe hanging off of Ruby's back. With a smirk, Jaune took it off of her, and folded out into it's scythe form. Mere seconds later, Jaune G. found the scythe's blade at his throat. He held up his hands in surrender.

Ruby was in front of him, glaring menacingly at him, despite her very short height and young age. She then snapped out of her trance, and seemed to realize that her friend was, in fact, spectral and green.

"Jaune?"

"Yes, and do not space out on me again, Ruby." Jaune G. said.

Ruby huffed. "Well, you can't blame me for being shocked that my friend can tear himself into two people, can you?" Ruby said as she gently put Crescent Rose into her locker. She closed the door and waited. Seeing her expectant expression, Jaune G. raised an eyebrow.

"What?" He asked.

Ruby gestured to the lockers. "Aren't you going to put your weapons away?" She asked.

Jaune G. shook his head. "I am unable to do that in this form, Ruby. I require both forms in order to separate from my weapons." Jaune explained, and as demonstration, tossed one of Beithir's Talons across the room, only for it to reappear at Jaune G.'s waist.

"See?"

Ruby nodded. She sighed before she exited the locker room, Jaune G. in tow. She decided to take a nap, given that Jaune G. had given her one of the most troublesome headaches she's ever had. And she has a Yang.

That's saying something.

* * *

 **With Jaune P. and Yang:**

Jaune P. continued to drag Yang through the halls of Beacon Academy. He sighed as Yang was still unresponsive. He pushed open the door leading to the courtyard, holding it open with one hand while pulling Yang through with the other, and sat Yang down onto a nearby bench, hoping that her brain would reboot. He sat down next to her, his elbows resting on his knees and his hands clasped together, his thumbs holding up his chin.

They sat there for a while, and Jaune P. decided to get in just a small bit of practice with his scythes. He was more used to using Chaoseater, as Beithir's Talons were a last minute gift from Death. But he had some experience with scythes, given that Death was a master at them, second to none. Jaune P. connected the two rings at the handles of the scythes, forming the two scythes into one passive scythe with a large curved blade, and a smaller, straight blade at the other end. Jaune P. threw the large scythe in a circle, a larger, purple aura apparition of his scythe following the real scythe's path, before catching it, and stabbing it into the grass. He looked over to Yang, to see if she had snapped out of her daze yet.

She had not.

So, he continued to practice, practicing regular attacks and aura-enhanced attacks. He had just finished a combo that ended with him throwing his scythe forwards, spinning it vertically while enhanced with aura, and catching it, when a small snore caught his attention. Looking back, he saw Yang had fallen asleep, with her head tilted backwards. He sighed.

Disconnecting his scythes, folding them up, and hanging back onto his belt, Jaune P. carefully grabbed Yang's arm and draped it over his shoulders. He grunted as he started dragging her back into the building, her snores filling the hallways with sound.

* * *

 **Beacon Academy; Ball Room:Later that night...**

Jaune snorted as he looked around, watching as a large amount of the boys walked around shirtless, hoping to impress the female students. Jaune himself, however, had settled for merely removing his armor and weapons, leaving him in his black pants, dark gray thermal tee-shirt, his gray cowl and hood, which was still up, and his combat boots. He sat against the far wall, an open view of all the students available to him. He looked over to where Ruby and Yang were. The two of them were fast asleep already, no doubt thanks to himself. Jaune chuckled.

He looked to his right, and found a black-haired girl with amber eyes, reading a book. He noted the large black bow that sat on top of her head, and tried not stare at her... rather revealing set of pajamas. Unfortunately, the girl caught his gaze and raised an eyebrow. Jaune gave a small smile before returning to his own business. He started looking around the room once more, before a teacher came into the room. He recognized the teacher as Miss Goodwitch, the strict blonde that had already given two students after-school detention.

"Students, I would advise that you sleep now. You have a long day tomorrow, and your Initiation will require you to be at your best shape. I will be turning off the lights shortly, and in the meantime, I suggest you prepare for bed. That is all." And with that, the woman left. Jaune watched as the bathroom was flooded with people carrying toothbrushes, acne kits, and even a few hair-rollers.

He shook his head before let his body rest, and his head hang. He barely heard the conversations of the students around him, before he darkness clouded his vision.

* * *

 **A/N: Another story! I know right? Why am I writing this when I already have one mainstream story and a bunch of others as well? I have no clue. But, as usual, if you enjoy this chapter, and would like to see more, please send your reviews, and I'll try and write a 2nd chapter. Until then...**

 **This is IU13, signing out!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Alright guys, here we are. Chapter 2!**

* * *

 **Vale; Beacon Academy:**

Jaune woke up on the floor. He blinked, trying to get the crust out of his eyes. There was a single ray of sunlight shining onto his eye. Blocking the ray with his arm, he pushed himself off of the ground, stretching a little. Jaune looked at a nearby clock on the wall to check the time.

"7:00... I need to wake earlier," Jaune mused, rubbing his eyes. " I might still be on Vacuo time."

He looked around to see who was awake. There was only one other: the girl with big black bow from last night. She sat in the same spot Jaune had seen her before, sitting in the corner to his right. She looked up from her book and gave a nod of acknowledgment, which Jaune returned. He pushed himself off of the ground, before heading to the cafeteria. He could clean himself off later. As Jaune walked to the Cafeteria he passed by Ruby and Yang, and the sight amused him.

Yang slept spread eagle, her sleeping bag laying on top of Ruby, who slept face down in her sleeping bag. Did he mention that Yang was sleeping on top of Ruby?

Jaune chuckled. He continued onto the Lunch room, foregoing trying to wake up the two sisters. He greeted the kind lunch-ladies with a smile, before grabbing a plate of two eggs, four pancakes, seven bacon strips, and a class of water and orange juice.

As soon as he sat down at the table, Jaune downed both the orange juice and the water immediately. Turning to the food, they too vanished in mere minutes. Jaune sat back and gave a satisfied sigh. He'd have to thank the cooks after Initiation.

If he ever made it past that.

He shook his head slowly.

Jaune got up and went to the bathroom to freshen up. Though, his way of freshening up was different. Jaune turned on the shower and stood in the water, all of his clothes still on his body. When he finished, Jaune activated his semblance, burning off all the moisture, bacteria, and filth. With his clothes dry, Jaune walked out of the bathroom feeling refreshed and ready to start his day.

He headed out of the building and into the sunlight. He stopped, and merely stood in place to enjoy the environment.

The feeling of the sun on his face.

The wind that bristled his hair.

The birds that chirped in the courtyard.

All of it, Jaune appreciated. Very rarely did Jaune get to enjoy nature when he was with his master. Often, it was because he did not have the time to do so. Too many missions and time spent studying.

Speaking of studying...

Jaune went back inside and headed to the locker rooms, where all of his stuff was currently residing. Aside from all of his gear, which he immediately donned along with his weapons, there was a small leatherbound book held together with nothing but worn string. Jaune flipped it open, and he began to read. For nearly two hours straight, he read.

What he held in his hands, was the personal diary of War, his master's brother. He who was felled by a sea of Grimm after devastating the land with each swing of his sword. The very same sword that now hung on Jaune's back. He had already read through the entirety of the book, repetitively. So much so, that he could accurately recount all of the tales confined within the book's worn out pages.

The blonde successor to War sighed contentedly as he closed the book shut with a sharp _'snap!'_

He had just finished re-reading the section about War's victory against a Titan-Class Grimm named Straga, as well as his fight against Silitha, an old, sentient Arachne-Class Grimm. As he got out of his seat and made to put his book back in his locker, he was rudely pushed to the side by a bulky orange-haired teen with silver armor. Jaune tilted his head a little, before ignoring the event all-together. After he returned his book to his locker, he began to head to Beacon Cliffs for Initiation. That is, until he remembered something he had forgotten in his locker. Running back towards the locker-room, Jaune was able to catch a glimpse of some other students stirring from their slumber.

Once he arrived, Jaune opened his locker and took out a... silver and gray gun -a revolver to be precise. Etched onto the side, in bold letters was the word 'MERCY.' It had four barrels, arranged in the shape of a cross, as well as a shotgun pump in the front, in place as an alternative to the hammer at the back of the gun. At the back, there was a hand-guard that extended from the grip to the bottom of the gun, right in front of the trigger guard. What Jaune loved about it the most, however, was that instead of bullets, it shot projectiles made entirely of aura.

He reached around and holstered it on the back of his hip, and made his way to Beacon Cliffs. As he trekked through the halls, Jaune noticed that there were now a lot more people than before. Students, out and about, milled towards the cafeteria, some still dressed in their night clothes. Jaune grinned a little as he saw Ruby and Yang arguing at a nearby lunch table. Ruby saw him pass the lunch room and waved at him. Smiling, Jaune waved back, before resuming his trip to the Initiation site.

As he strode through the large hallways of Beacon Academy, he once again passed that auburn-haired boy in silver armor. The boy scowled at him, making sure to shove past Jaune when he passed. This caused the young Arc to raise an eyebrow at the act of... aggression.

Resuming his trek, his mind roamed onto the cause of the boy's behavior towards him. Jaune wondered, "What did I do wrong? I don't remember having to vomit these past few days. Did I say something in my sleep?"

He was quick to reject that idea, "No, no, he was on the other side of the ball room if I remember correctly."

He looked up to the ceiling in confusion. "Is this what Death warned me about? Is this 'Bullying?' School is so confusing."

Jaune shrugged to himself as he pushed open the door leading outside. Looking down at his scroll for directions, Jaune made his way around the school and towards the Emerald Forest, where the Initiation would take place. He arrived at a wall of trees, which stood in the way of him and Beacon Cliffs. Jaune grinned, and took the handle of Chaoseater into his hands and retrieving it from his back. Jaunes stepped into the luscious green scenery with his sword in hand. After walking for a few seconds, Jaune twirled his sword in the air, wisps of orange aura trailing off the blade, before stabbing the sword into the ground with great force. All at once, hundreds of orange copies of Chaoseater sprang out of the ground, slicing away at the foliage with their flaming blades of aura. Looking around and admiring his work, Jaune saw that there was now a short tunnel that led straight towards Beacon Cliffs.

With a smile, Jaune pulled Chaoseater out of the ground and returned it to its place on his back. As he walked through the tunnel, Jaune checked over all of his weapons. His Fists of Elhazar were in peak condition, not a scratch present. Beithir's talons were all set for battle, as Jaune unfolded them and connected them. Putting away his scythes, Jaune took out Mercy, inspecting both the aura chamber and the hammer. He twirled on his finger once for good measure, but put away afterwards. He reached Beacon Cliffs alone. No one else was present, which was fine to Jaune.

He rather enjoyed solitude. He sat down onto the edge of the cliff to wait, enjoying the feeling of the warm, morning air. Looking back, Jaune saw that there were these square metal plates in the ground. After a few minutes of observation, Jaune came to a conclusion as to what they were.

"Hover pads? Wow, I must have missed a lot during my time with Death." Jaune chuckled at that.

Jaune murmured to himself in amusement, "I wonder how many other people have ever said that in their lives?" With a grin bordering the line of idiotic, Jaune decided to step on one of the 'hover-pads' and take it around for a test drive.

"Hm... I wonder how it works?" Jaune pondered, looking around for an 'on' switch. After a few seconds, Jaune found a silver button hiding underneath a leaf, and above it was a label that read 'RELEASE.'

Just as he was about to press the button, there was a rustling of leave behind him, and out stepped two people. He looked over and saw that one of them was Ozpin, and the other was a blonde-haired, green-eyed woman. She was dressed professionally, with a worn purple cape hanging off her back, and she had this aura of authority around her.

She was also the one to yell at him.

"You there! Just what do you think you're doing?!" The woman demanded, rushing over to him.

Jaune jumped a little the sudden sternness of the woman's tone, and he stumbled slightly. However slight the stumble was, it was just enough for him to move his foot to keep from losing his balance. Just enough to move his foot...

"A-Ah! My sincerest apologies!" Jaune quickly apologized, "I did not know tha- wait what is that ticking so~OOOOUUUUUNNNND!"

...right over a silver button.

There was a loud yell of surprise as Jaune was sent flinging into the air by his 'hover-board.' However, that plate was not hover-board. A stray leaf, which had partially covered the label of the silver button, was now blown away by the force of the catapult, and revealed one word that Jaune had failed to see.

The woman looked down at the button that the young man had stepped on, and read the label out loud with an irritated sigh. "Catapult Release. Of course."

* * *

 **With Jaune...**

"SWEET MOTHER OF DEATH!" Jaune yelled as he landed in a tree. He fell, snapping branches underneath him as he tumbled to the forest floor, before he ultimately stopped. His eyes had been shut closed for most of the fall, more in fright than anything else.

...What? Just because his master was one of the most badass warriors in the world, it didn't mean he himself was afraid of nothing.

Jaune groaned as he dangled from a branch, which had snagged the hood of his cowl. The wind gently swayed him from side to side, and Jaune slowly found himself closing his eyes, this time in exhaustion. Though, he just woke up, didn't he? Why was he tired?

It was then that Jaune felt a sharp pain in his abdomen, and his head immediately looked down. To his irritation and slight horror, Jaune found a branch sticking out of his stomach. It hadn't gone through the middle, thankfully, but it still hurt since it was sticking out of his side. From his perch in the tree, Jaune clenched his teeth and grabbed hold of the branch.

"1... 2... 3! RRRRRAAAAAGH!"

He hung limp, the branch previously impaling him now clutched in his hands, blood dripping off of the tip. Jaune focused all of his aura onto the wounded area, and the pain of the wound slowly faded. Jaune looked down at the ground, which was about twenty feet below him. Should he fall, his aura _might_ shield him, but even then, he wasn't so sure. He'd never really been able to monitor his aura levels, so he always assumed that he had a low amount of aura, so that he'd be more cautious and wary in a fight.

Jaune jerked his body sideways, trying to turn his body so that he was facing the trunk of the tree he was caught on. After a few strong jerks, Jaune was facing the trunk, which was only a few feet out of his reach. Jaune reached for his scythes and unhooked them from his hips, the blades flipping out. Jaune swung his legs forwards, then backwards, trying to get momentum. Hopefully, the branch he was on didn't snap when he was swinging backwards. Once he had a decent amount of momentum, Jaune kicked upwards, unhooking the hood of his cowl form the branch, and fell to the ground. As he fell, Jaune swung his scythe and embedded the blades into the bark of the tree, gouging deep gashes into the side. His fall was slowed just in time, Jaune noted as he looked down to find that the ground was just beneath him. Jaune tugged the blades of his scythes out of the tree and returned them to his hips as he landed on his feet.

Jaune winced at the pain in his side once again. Apparently, that little stunt he did disturbed the wound. He looked to the sky. The sun was on his left, and since it was morning, that means his left was east. Which meant that north was behind him. When he was at the cliffs, the sun was to his right. So, Beacon was north? Jaune shrugged. It was better to take a risk than to do nothing and risk getting mauled by the grimm from the area.

He reached behind him and unhooked Chaoseater from its clip on his back.

* * *

 **Beacon Cliffs; Beacon Academy:**

Ruby couldn't help but feel anxious when she saw the look on Ms. Goodwitch's face. Her scowl could probably scare even the strongest of huntsman into submission. Ruby's grip on Crescent Rose tightened as she approached Beacon Cliffs, her sister Yang and a few other people next to her. There were some muted conversations among the group, but they died as soon as they came into contact with Ms. Goodrich's scowl. Everyone was silent as they approached Goodwitch and another person, Headmaster Ozpin. The man had his signature mug within his grasp, and was currently taking a sip with a raised eyebrow directed at the group of teens.

Once she stepped out into the clearing, she noticed that to her immediate right there was a perfectly shaped tunnel made of foliage that lead... somewhere.

' _Wonder who made that?_ ' Ruby pondered. She looked around for her first friend, Jaune.

He was rather interesting, but also kind of... dull. It made Ruby a little sad that he didn't have any friends because people were too afraid of him. He was really nice, and his sword was pretty cool, too. And the fact that he was a scythe user as well already labeled him as cool in her book. However, looking around, she could not find the sword and scythe user anywhere. As she looked around, she also noticed that there was what appeared to be a catapult sticking out of the ground, seemingly already sprung.

"Huh. Well would ya' look at that," Yang said from beside her. Ruby turned to her with a cute tilt of the head. Her sister grinned. "Looks like we're goin' in hot!"

It took a second for the pieces to click together in her head, but once they did, Ruby gave a small smile. "Well, I guess being throw into a forest is pretty fun," she murmured.

Yang noticed the disappointment lacing her little sister's voice, piquing her curiosity. "What's the matter sis? You sound disappointed!"

Ruby nodded. "Yeah," she relied, kicking the dirt, "just a little sad that I can't find a friend of mine. Y'know, the one whose hand you tried to crush?"

The blonde brawler winced at having been caught. "Heheh. Y-Yeah, I remember him. He was pretty nice, right?"

"Yeah he was, but can you please stop trying to scare off my friends? Yang, I'm a grown up now! Can't you trust me to make my own friends?"

Yang flinched guiltily. "Okay, okay, you're right. I'm sorry, Ruby."

Ruby nodded and smiled at her sister. "As long as you know."

Suddenly, the sound of a blade stabbing through rock cut through the silence. Ruby looked around for the source of the noise, and found that it was coming from over the edge of Beacon Cliffs. Professor Goodwitch seemed to have heard it too, as she had her riding crop in hand and was backing away from the edge. Ozpin, however, did not budge, and simply continued to sip from his mug with a small smile.

What Ruby saw next instantly removed any sense of danger in her mind. One of Beithir's Talon's hooked over the edge of the cliff, stabbing into the grass in the process. Suddenly, a figure jumped onto the side, pulling the blade out of the ground and landing in the middle of the group. Jaune looked up at everyone, his semblance still active.

Everyone looked at him in awe. His skin was the color of stone, with ancient markings carved into his skin with seemingly red hot lava. Flames flickered off of his skin, crackling slightly. And then, it was gone.

After that, Jaune immediately turned to Professor Goodwitch and unhooked his sword. Seeing Jaune coming at her with one his sword and one of his scythes in his hand, her riding crop was immediately pointed at him.

"You there! What are you doing-"

"I sincerely apologize for my actions earlier this morning ma'am," Jaune interrupted, sword stabbed into the ground in front of him and his scythe laying across the floor. Slightly confused by the action, Goodwitch slowly lowered her riding crop.

"It's... All is forgiven. Just... be careful in the future, clear?"

Jaune nodded. "Crystal."

"Well, how nice of you to join us Mr. Arc," Ozpin interrupted, a small smile dawning onto Jaune smugly.

"Yes, I must apologize Headmaster."

Ozpin waved off the apology with a flippant wave of his mug. "Oh don't worry yourself. You came back, did you not?"

Jaune looked back up and smiled. "Yes, I did. However, it will not happen again."

Ozpin nodded. "Good. If you would, please join your classmates on the launch pads. Glynda? If you would please reset that launch pad?"

* * *

 **Vale; Emerald Forest:** **With Ruby...**

"Eye contact?! What?!" Ruby yelled as she flew through the air. She had to find Yang! Or Jaune! Both were good!

As soon as she passed through the canopy of the forest, Ruby swung her scythe, imbedding its blade into the trunk of a particularly thick tree. However, as she slid down, she noticed that there seemed to be two long, deep gashes that extended down to the ground. As she landed, she looked up at the gashes in wonder.

"Maybe they came from last year's initiates..." Ruby murmured.

Suddenly, she heard the sound of rustling leaves. Ruby turned, scythe poised to strike, when Jaune popped out. "Yay! Jaune!"

"Hello again, Ruby," Jaune greeted with a smile. "It seems you and I are partners. A pleasure."

Jaune held out a hand to her, which Ruby tentatively shook.

"Uh... where do we go now?" Ruby asked, looking up at the treetops and spinning slowly. Jaune lightly tapped her shoulder and pointed to his right.

"That is south. Headmaster Ozpin told us that the ruins would be located south of Beacon Cliffs," Jaune explained, already beginning to walk away.

Ruby quickly caught up to him, having to jog slightly to keep up with the taller boy. "Wow, how'd you know?"

Jaune stopped and pointed at the two large gashes in the tree Ruby had used to land. "Those gashes? Those are mine. I had accidently activated the catapult and launched myself into the forest. That was why I had met up with you guys the way I did."

Ruby stared at him in awe. "You climbed all the way back up?! That's awesome!"

Jaune smirked slightly. "Well, my semblance provides me with many bonuses. Increased strength is one of them. For example..." Jaune trailed off, activating his semblance so that his right arm was covered in molten rock. He then proceeded to punch a tree next to him.

The fact that the whole base of the tree was obliterated was a testament to how much strength Jaune's semblance gave him.

The tree landed on its own stump, and Jaune sidestepped to allow the tree to fall where he had once been standing. The tree hit the ground with a loud thud.

"Wow..." Ruby gasped, mouth ajar. Jaune turned to her, arm returning to normal, before gesturing for her to come along.

The little reaper quickly sped next to Jaune, asking him to show her his semblance again over 30 times in the span of five seconds. Really, all she had said was 'again, again,' over and over and over again, but still.

Jaune shook his head in refusal, and after seeing Ruby's downtrodden expression, quickly added, "I would like to conserve as much aura as possible for the inevitable battles to come." Although Ruby could understand the logic, she was still pretty disappointed. After all, there weren't many semblances that changed the user's physical appearance. Heck, it was one of the reasons why Ruby loved her sister's semblance, since it changed the color of her eyes from lilac to red. Honestly, Ruby really liked the way Yang looked when her eyes were red, but that's besides the point.

"So, how far do you think the temple is?" Ruby asked, walking alongside Jaune, who had taken to shortening his strides so that his partner had an easier time staying with him.

Jaune thought for a moment. "Considering how vast the Emerald Forest was from when we were up in the air, I would assume that we are a long ways away from our objective. I would hazard a guess of a 60 minute arrival time," Jaune said, cutting a few vines that hung in his way with Chaoseater. Ruby took noticed of how easily the blade seemed to slice through the air, even managing to pass through a tree that had been unfortunate enough to be in close proximity. She winced at the thought of being wounded by a blade that sharp. And, if her cut from the Bullhead had anything to say, it didn't take much for the blade to cut.

"Jaune, as soon as we pass this initiation, we're getting you a sheath for your sword," Ruby told him, glaring at him to make sure that he didn't say otherwise. However, he did.

"You need not worry, Ruby. The blade, once stowed upon my back, is protected by a runic barrier. See here?" Jaune pointed to a small symbol at the hilt of the sword, "That rune was inscribed my master's brother, or rather, my predecessor, if you will. He had thought of the very same thing as you, and thus engraved this rune as a safety precaution," Jaune explained, but then chuckled. "Let it be known it is one of the only three precautions he ever took."

Ruby giggled a little at that, but then seemed to remember something from when she first met Jaune. "Hey Jaune?"

The boy looked back at her with a raised eyebrow. "Yes?"

Ruby swallowed before asking her question. "Y-You said the person who had that sword before you fell in battle. I-Is it okay if I ask how?"

Jaune smiled at her nervousness. "Of course. I knew very little of him anyway, at least, on a personal level," Jaune quickly added. "So, you would like to know how he was felled, huh? Well, the last assignment he ever took as a Keeper was-"

"Wait! Did you say he was a Keeper?!" Ruby interrupted. Jaune smiled at her enthusiasm.

"Why, yes I did as a matter of fact. Have you perhaps heard of the term beforehand?" Jaune asked.

"W-Well, my mom used to tell me all kinds of stories when I was a kid, and she loved to tell me about the Keepers. Her goal was to become a Keeper, to become a guardian of peace, and a protector of the people. B-But she never got to."

Jaune glanced at Ruby sympathetically, fully aware of what that implied. "My apologies, Ruby. You have my condolences."

Ruby waved it off with a blush. "I-It's fine! A-Anyway, I'm sorry I interrupted you. So, what were you saying?"

Jaune smiled and cleared his throat. "As I said before, the last assignment he took was, at first glance, a simple one, in Keeper's terms. It was a simple elimination assignment. He was to kill Dark Draconus at the top of a place called the Peaks of Heaven. Let it be known that all that I know of my predecessor's death was provided to me by my master, so I am not fully knowledgeable of what truly happened," Jaune said, nodding to her.

"Anyway, where was I? Ah, yes. His assignment. Well, of course, the life of a Keeper is never easy, and the mission turned gruesome. My predecessor had been surrounded by Grimm, and the Dark Draconus had spoken to him, trying to coax him into the darkness."

Ruby's eyes widened at that, and Jaune laughed. "I know right? But according to my master, this is true. The Draconus had said, 'Heaven hunts you... Hell hates you... All of creation cares not whether you live or die. Join me, War. Like a great sword, I will raise you up!'" Jaune exclaimed, taking on a dark tone of voice. "'Our enemies will shatter against us. And so I offer you this choice Horseman, would you serve in Heaven, or rule in Hell?'"

Ruby was honestly baffled. She didn't know that Grimm were capable of sentience. She didn't know they could speak!

"Was that really a Grimm?" Ruby asked, fearful of the answer.

Jaune shrugged. "Who knows? That is what my master told me, but he has a tendency to spit lies more so than he speaks truth. At least, when talking to me."

About half an hour later, Jaune stowed his sword again after cutting down another batch of vines, coming into a clearing. A bit farther ahead, the two of them could see the ruins Ozpin had mentioned.

"Look," Jaune said, pointing at the ruins at two figures, "it appears someone has beaten us to our objective."

Ruby pouted. "I thought we were going to be the first ones to get here."

Jaune laughed. "Worry not, Ruby. It is of little consequence, not arriving here first."

Ruby nodded, but ultimately turned the conversation back to Jaune's story. "So your pre... prede... predese-"

"Predecessor?"

Ruby nodded, "Yeah that, his name was War?"

Jaune nodded. "Yes."

Ruby kind of felt bad for him. "Wow, did his parents hate him or something?"

Jaune chuckled a little. "No, that is surely not the case. According to my master, he was actually the favorite of the family. And it wasn't uncommon for people to name their children such names back then, especially during the Great War. In fact, my master's name could be seen as far worse: Death."

Ruby shivered a little. "Death? That is kind of worse. And why did the Draconus call War a Horseman?"

Jaune smiled at her. "Because of this." Jaune stepped aside, and flames erupted from the ground. From the flames, a horse rose, standing on its hind legs and neighing loudly. Ruby stared in awe. The horse did not appear to have hair, aside from its mane and tail. Its "skin" was ashen brown, and looked like moving stone. There were a few symbols that glowed orange above the horse's front and hind legs, a crescent with two lines intersecting from the middle. The beast's eyes glowed a bright orange, and its nostrils flared with fire. But there was one thing that really caught Ruby's attention. Its legs, from the lower legs to the hooves, were orange with seemingly molten lava. The horse stood again, whining once more.

"Woah there, Ruin. Calm yourself." Jaune said, resting a gauntleted hand on the horse's mane. "Ruin" calmed down, and eventually simply trotted in place, flames curling off of its body.

"Ruby, meet Ruin. Ruin, greet Ruby."

Ruby walked up to the beast's head and extended a hand, to which the horse whinnied. The horse did not move, though, and Ruby's hand gently touched its nose, softly rubbing it. The horse sneezed in response, getting some kind of glowing orange liquid on her boots.

"That is disgusting, Ruin. Apologize." Jaune said, pointing at Ruby. Ruin snorted, but otherwise went to Ruby and rested its head on Ruby's.

"That is his way of apologizing, Ruby. Could you please forgive him? I am terribly sorry." Jaune said, taking out a black cloth from his back pocket and wiping the glowing stuff off her boots.

"I-It's fine."

"Hey you two! What are you doing over here?" An exuberant voice suddenly called out from behind them. Jaune turned, and was met face to face with none other than Yang Xiao Long.

"I was showing your younger kin my steed. This is Ruin," Jaune said, gesturing to the horse's head, which was still resting on Ruby's.

Jaune rolled his eyes and started patting Ruin's side. "Okay Ruin, that is enough. I believe your message was clear."

The other person standing next to Yang, a girl wearing all black as well as a black bow, seemed wary of standing near the horse. Ruin snorted, before trotting over to Yang and nudging her.

"Hey, what the?" Yang said. Jaune chuckled and lightly pulled Ruin away.

"He likes your presence Ms. Xiang Long. Perhaps he can sense the fire you hold within?" Jaune suggested.

Yang laughed with a wave of the hand. "Maybe. And just call me Yang."

Jaune turned to the girl in black. "I do believe we've not met before, miss. My name is Jaune Arc. May I ask for yours?" Jaune asked, holding out a hand for her to shake.

"Blake, Blake Belladonna." The girl's introduction was a little curt, but she at least had the decency to shake his hand. Jaune made sure to be very delicate, unlike Yang's handshake.

"A pleasure to meet you Ms. Belladonna." Jaune said. He then turned to the ruins and began to walk over to it. Once there, he noticed a few chess pieces standing on stone pedestals.

"Are these the relics? They don't appear that old. Hm..." Jaune turned over the pawn he had picked up, trying to find out why these pieces were called "relics".

Looking on the bottom, he found the reason. "By the depths of hell... The Lost Pieces of Strife." Jaune muttered, looking at his master's brother's symbol. The symbol wasn't too special, but still discernible: a scale with two guns in each plate, and over the top, the head of a mechanical horse.

The chess pieces were a gift to Strife from an Archon Angel from the White City. Strife had aided the angel in performing a rather dangerous task, and in turn, she gave him these chess pieces, which were said to give Keepers unbelievable power if the type of piece aligned with the person. Strife only used four of the pieces, for his siblings and himself, and the rest were lost. To find them here...

"Hm..." Jaune hummed, deep in thought. "How did Ozpin get his hands on these? Hmph, no matter. Death will more than likely want to hear about these, so that he may give them back to Strife."

Then, a thought struck him. The only reason Strife had helped the Angel was because she was a woman, and according to Death, a rather attractive one at that.

"...I do not believe Strife will be seeing these," Jaune concluded, before turning away with the golden pawn in hand. If he were a Keeper, he would have immediately tested out each and every one of the chess pieces to see which one aligned with him, but he wasn't a Keeper. There'd be no point.

Ruby appeared next to him, looking over his arm at the piece Jaune had selected. "Why did you pick such a boring piece? Why not the pony?" Ruby asked, pointing at said piece.

Jaune shook his head. "The pawn, although unassuming, can be considered the most versatile out of all of the pieces in chess. For example, it is exemplary in both offense as well defense, and also has the capability to change into a queen piece. In other words, it can be considered the most dangerous."

 **(DISCLAIMER: I know nothing about chess! If I completely messed up this explanation please correct me!)**

Ruby nodded her head, more so to agree with him than to show she understood.

She didn't.

"Um... okay!" Ruby said, before speeding off to speak with her sister and her partner.

' _Hm... A faunus?_ ' Jaune wondered, noting how Blake's bow had twitched before Ruby's arrival beside her.

 _'The only explanation for the bow's ability to move is that there is either a mechanism underneath the cloth, which I highly doubt, or she has ears hidden beneath. The question is, why conceal them?_ ' Jaune wondered, his answers to his own question causing his hand to itch towards his scythe.

' _Is she White Fang?_ '

Jaune's left hand now sat on the end of his scythe's handle. He'd give her a chance.

' _The moment she shows aggression, she will be eliminated_ '

Jaune nodded at his own conclusion and let his hand hang by his side. He stepped into place beside Yang, and lightly tapped her shoulder.

"Yeah? What's up?" she asked as she turned around.

"I was wondering what piece you selected," Jaune told her, showing her the pawn. Yang grinned and held out a golden knight piece.

"I got a pony!" she exclaimed, lightly caressing the horse's head as if it were a small animal.

Jaune smiled as Ruin trotted up to his side. "And I have a horse. Would you like to compare?"

Yang blinked, then a grin slowly spread across her face. She punched him on the shoulder with a laugh. "You and I are gonna get along just fine!" She exclaimed.

Jaune raised an eyebrow at her. "Really? Is your hand okay?" he asked, gesturing to the hand that he had first shaken when he met her. Yang flinched and scratched the back of her head.

"Eh... Yeah... sorry 'bout that. It's just-"

"You need not worry, Yang. I perfectly understand," Jaune cut her off with a wave of the hand. Now it was Yang's turn to raise a brow at him.

"You do?"

Jaune nodded. "Yes. Believe it or not, I used to have seven sisters, four of them younger, three of them my elder. So yes, I do understand."

Yang whistled in amazement. "Wow, seven?" she said in astonishment, "Must have been pretty rough, eh?"

Jaune shook his head. "I can not quite remember," he replied honestly.

"Really? Did you, like, not see them for a long time?" Yang asked.

Jaune nodded. "I have not seen them for eight years," he answered, brushing his fingers across Ruin's charred mane.

Yang stood stunned at Jaune's statement. "E-Eight years?!"

Jaune nodded solemnly. "Yes."

Yang gulped, then asked a question she had from Jaune's explanation for his sympathy. "Why did you say you 'used to' have seven sisters? Even though you haven't seen them for a long time, they're still your sisters!"

Jaune shook his head. "I feel that they resent me for running away. For leaving them. I feel that they do not think of me as a brother any longer. Only a disgrace. That is why I have not seen them yet. I wish to prove to them that I can be something more than what I was before, to show them that I am capable of achieving my goals."

"And yet, despite the fact that I believe they hate me, there is a small part within me that hopes that they will embrace me upon my return, and that I will still receive the same love and affection I did in the past," Jaune said, the hand on Ruin's mane coming to a stop.

Jaune shook his head. "My apologies, Yang. It appears as though I let my tongue slip."

Yang waved him off. "No no no! It's alright, really! I get it, really, I do."

Jaune raised an eyebrow, but quickly smiled afterwards. "Anyway, it would be best if we began our return to the Cliffs. The sooner we complete our objective, the better. What say you?"

Yang nodded. "Yeah, we can go do that. Even then, it was kinda boring getting here. I mean, I was expecting a lot more fighting and Grimm. So far it's been really... peaceful."

"Is that so?" Jaune inquired. "Well, it is the same with Ruby and me. It was rather uneventful, the trip to the ruins. We have yet to encounter any Grimm."

 **SCREECH!**

The sudden caw of a Nevermore caught the attention of the four people, who immediately looked to the skies for the source. What they found was a Nevermore Omega, about four times the size of a regular Nevermore.

Jaune hung his head a little. "Spoke too soon..." he muttered. He unhooked his scythes and flipped the out, the blades rotating into place with a solid ***CLINK***. He rolled his shoulders, cracking their joints before dropping into a stance, crossing his scythes' blades in front of him.

Ruby already had her scythe ready to attack, and Blake had her weapon, some kind of cleaver, already in her hands. Beside him, Jaune could hear the cocking of a shotgun, and he looked to Yang to see her arms covered in gauntlets.

Were those... shotgun shells?

"Shotgun gauntlets, hm?" Jaune commented to the side, drawing Yang's attention away from the Nevermore for a second.

"Yeah! Pretty neat, huh?"

Jaune nodded. "They are," he turned to her with a grin, "but do you believe they will withstand this challenge? A Nevermore Omega is never to be taken lightly."

Yang punched her fist into an open palm, grinning all the while. "Heh. Withstand? Please, get out of here with your fancy words," Yang joked. "My babies are gonna blow that bird sky high!"

Jaune groaned. ' _I hope that was unintentional,_ ' Jaune thought. The Nevermore screeched one more time, before diving straight towards them.

"Prepare yourselves!!!" Jaune yelled.

Just as the bird's beak was about to make contact with Jaune, he swung his scythe with as much force as he could muster...

 **A/N: Alright guys! I'm back. Did ya' miss me? No? Okay... Anyway, I'm so sorry this chapter took so long to get out. If you don't already know at this time I've been working on overhauling The Odd One, Activated, and so far, my progress has just slowed gradually. So, like I said before, I'm sorry!**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Alright guys, let it out. I know, I know. I'm a dickwad aren't I? As much as it pains me to say it, this story just isn't my main focus when it comes to FanFiction. And as much as I love how well received this story was, I mainly have a lot of my focus on my rewrite of the Odd One. Now, that aside, I am very sorry for not updating this fic, believe me, I am.**

 **And to address Division of Duties... well, that's going to be put off for a little while longer. Why? Well, I'm currently typing with one arm. Why? Well, I kinda sorta maybe broke my left arm while playing Airsoft a few weeks ago. Yeah, fell off the second story and fractured it. It's getting better, but my updates will be severely delayed because of it. I'll be leaving a note on the next chapter of Division of Duties to tell everyone else about this as well.**

 **Whew, now that that's out of the way, let's continue where we left off!**

 **Vale; Emerald Forest: Initiation...**

"Okay Jaune, first off? Can we not run head long into an Omega Nevermore recklessly? I mean, I know you're strong and all but still..."

Jaune winced as he sat against one of the knocked down pillars, to his right his silvered-eyed partner scolding him for his previous actions while simultaneously firing gravity dust rounds at the aforementioned creature of Grimm. As one might expect, taking a swing at a dangerous ancient creature ended poorly for Jaune, as proven by two broken ribs and a possibly equally broken collar bone. The foul beast had taken little damage from Beithir's Talons' fiery blades, and had instead hit Jaune so hard that he had travelled through four walls of the ancient ruins. Thankfully, they were not shattered, so he could heal those with his aura very easily.

"Ugh... I am afraid I have given something to Death to lord over me once again..." Jaune muttered as he focused his aura into his injuries. He made a very noticeable jerk when he felt a rib painfully slide back into place. He sat back against the pillar as he felt his aura finish its work, and flinched a bit when Ruby fired Crescent Rose again. Such a loud piece of weaponry. Admittedly, a fine piece, but a loud one nonetheless.

"Oh, I suppose I have no room to speak on that matter."

Ruby turned to her partner, and her eyes widened when she saw him holding a silver and grey revolver that seemingly came from nowhere. She didn't have much time to gawk, as the Omega swooped down to the ground, passing right above her head. The wind generated from the creature knocked her onto her back, but she quickly scrambled to her feet and regrouped with her sister and her partner. Yang and Blake were both shooting at the oversized bird, and doing very little damage in doing so. Yang growled in frustration.

"How are we supposed to take down this stupid thing?!?" Yang yelled over the sound of her gauntlets. Blake grunted her agreement, loading another magazine into Gambol.

Ruby loaded a new fire dust round magazine herself, making a little grunt as she primed her baby. She took aim for the Omega's eye, but it closed it right before the shot could take it out, blocking the bullet with a bone-covered eyelid.

Jaune had separated from them, maneuvering the ruins in hopes of getting close enough to the Nevermore to use his scythes. So far, he had no such luck, as the Omega had seen to staying high in the sky. Jaune squeezed off another round from his revolver, a large, white ball of aura hurling at hyper sonic speeds towards the beast.

Unfortunately, Jaune's aim was not very good. He had only taken rudimentary lessons from Death, as the Keeper had used a different revolver that used Death's aura and tracked its targets. Without its tracking, Death's aim is about as good as his affinity with swords. Needless to say, not very good. Jaune cursed his aim as the aura round just barely managed to clip the top of the Omega's wings. The Grimm screeched loudly in agony, flapping its wings once which in turn sent a very powerful gust of wind his way, instantly obliterating his cover and knocking him back a solid 100 feet and into a tree.

Ruby watched this happen in horror, and she angrily sped up the side of the cliff and pushed off the top, soaring into the sky and landing on the bird's back. She hefted her scythed and made to bring it down, but lost her balance as the Omega tipped to its side. She teetered a little, but slipped off when the Omega flapped its wings, and she fell to the ground, hitting the dirt with a solid crash and creating a decently sized crater in the process. Yang jumped down from her pillar and raced to her sister's aid, dragging the silver-eyed girl into cover behind a pile of crumbled pillars.

"Ruby! Ruby, are you okay?!?" Yang said, shaking the poor girl's shoulders. Ruby nodded, though her head felt light and the world was still spinning.

Yang 'tch'd and stepped out from the rubble, firing a barrage of die slugs at the Omega's wings. The bird merely dodge them, swooping down to knock her away when the blonde bombshell sidestepped and punched it in the neck, simultaneously firing a fire slug and knocking the creature away from her and onto the ground. Blake swooped down from her pillar and impaled Gambol into the ground, tying her ribbon to Shroud and using it to hold the Omega's neck down. The bird struggled, but the aura enhanced cloth proved too difficult to break. Yang ran over to Gambol and held it down into the ground with her foot, while Blake pulled the ribbon tight and stabbed Shroud into the ground, also holding it in with her foot. Ruby, still in a daze, peeked from her piece of cover and watched as Jaune came over to the Omega and unhooked his sword from his back.

He let the blade fall, slicing the dirt with its sheer weight. He then lifted up, pointing the tip of the blade towards the ground. His aura covered the blade, lighting the metal's surface with a fiery blaze before he stabbed it into the ground. For a single moment, nothing seemed to happen, but then large copies of Jaune's sword, made entirely out of orange aura, came up from the ground and pierced the entire length of the Nevermore's body. The beast shrieked loudly, blasting away another pile of rubble a few yards to Ruby's right. Despite the numerous swords impaling it, the Omega seemed to have quite a bit of fight left in it, as its tail lifted up and fired a barrage of bone darts Jaune's way. Just managing to catch the movement in his peripheral vision, Jaune activated his semblance, his skin becoming hard like stone and fire leaked from glowing cracks in his body. The bone shards were not stopped, but rather redirected as they ricocheted off of Jaune's stony skin and into the ground.

Having been distracted by the sudden attack, Yang and Blake had left their guard down, and paid the price when the Omega forceful,y jerked its head and uprooted Gambol Shroud from the dirt, along with the black and yellow duo. The two collided into each other, and Gambol Shroud was thrown into the skies. Jaune, seeing his two teammates fall to the ground in front of the Nevermore, enhanced his legs with aura and lunged forward to catch them. They both landed in his arms, and he jumped backwards to avoid the talons that came crashing down on the ground where he had previously stood. Ruby, her bearings now gained, brought up Crescent Rose and shifted it into its scythe form. She charged the Nevermore with her semblance and cut off one its legs. The Nevermore shrieked, and shrieked once more when Ruby ran her blade up the middle of the beast's underbelly. The bird fell to its side, seemingly exhausting the rest of its energy. Jaune, having set down Blake and Yang, came over to the beast and unhooked his scythes, connecting them together to form one large scythe. He stabbed the small blade at the tail end of his scythe into the Nevermore's beak, preventing it from shrieking, and took out his revolver and shot the tail when it raised itelf to strike. Though his shot was a bit off, the projectile of aura was large enough in diameter to completely blast the tail off. A muffled shriek escaped from the Nevermore's closed beak, but it was silenced when Jaune stomped into the bird's giant head, his semblance active. A decently sized crater formed underneath the Omega's head, but it was miraculously still alive.

Jaune raised his revolver once more, and aimed it at the Nevermore's neck.

"Foul creature..." Jaune muttered, pulling the trigger. A loud bang sounded, and the Nevermore's head was no more. Jaune grunted in satisfaction and holstered his pistol, but then heard a crash. As in, the sounds of trees being smashed. Chaoseater was soon in his hands, same for his colleagues and their weapons.

For a few minutes, the sounds continued, until a large, dark figure broke through the tree line. A Deathstalker, about half the size of the Omega Nevermore, came charging out of the forest, trees clutched in its claws before being crushed into oblivion. In front of the beast were a pair of Huntresses, a red-head and a familiar white-haired girl.

He frowned as one of the Deathstalker's claws managed to clip the red-head's legs, and she was sent spiraling in his direction.

Jaune activated his semblance and dashed forward with the speed of a bullet, catching the red-haired girl in his arms. He skidded to a stop and set her down, taking out Mercy and aiming it at the Deathstalker. The gun barked, and the aura projectile came screaming out of the barrel, slamming into the Grimm's tail and sending it flying. The beast roared as it flew, and Weiss looked at him with a nod, that soon turned into a look of joy when she saw who it was.

"Jaune?!?" She exclaimed in surprise. Said Arc smiled sheepishly at her as she ran towards him. He opened his arms for a hug, only to retract them when she slapped his hand.

"Ow! Why must you?" Jaune cried out.

Weiss glared at him, freezing him in place. "Have you no shame? Why haven't contacted me?!?"

Jaune scratched the back of his head with a nervous smile. "Well... how should I put this... I have... been busy...?" Jaune replied cautiously, glancing at her for any reaction. And oh, did he get one.

"Busy? Busy?!?" Weiss yelled. "Well I've been busy, too! I've been busy worrying about you after you disappeared without a trace! Couldn't you at least have said goodbye?!?"

Weiss rant was cut off by the sound of an angry Deathstalker, and for a moment Jaune was given a reprieve from Weiss' cold glare. Only for a moment though, as her gaze was soon back on him, a bit softer, but the anger still present.

"We'll be having words after this, so don't you dare die."

Jaune gulped, but nodded nonetheless, and Weiss took off, Myrtenaster in hand. Jaune unhooked his scythes and ran after her. Ruin came up from the ground and Jaune wasted no time in mounting the fiery beast. Ruin neighed, reeling back on his hind legs before charging at the Deathstalker, streaks of orange flames coming off his snout. Jaune braced himself for the jump, and Ruin exploded into flames. The sheer power of the explosion shot Jaune into the air, and he linked his scythes together and flipped forwards. His flips increased in speed until he was spinning like a saw blade, hurling towards the Deathstalker like a flaming meteor. Mere seconds later, the blade of his scythe sunk into the Grimm's bone armor, causing it to let out a mighty shriek of agony as it bucked to get its offender off its back. Jaune held onto his scythe with his left hand, while with his right he unhooked his sword from his back and swung behind him. The Deathstalker's tail flopped to the ground, and it shrieked again. A particularly strong jerk dislodged Jaune's scythe from the beast's back, sending him flying a good 30 feet away.

The Deathstalker turned to him and charged with a mighty roar, swinging its claws wildly. Jaune hooked his sword onto his back and disconnected his scythes, bracing himself to jump at the last second. However, before the Grimm even got 10 feet away from him, a pink explosion knocked it off course, sending it onto its side. Jaune looked around for the source of the explosion. Suffice to say, he was surprised to find a ginger-haired teal-eyed girl riding an Ursa into battle while laughing hysterically. Ah, he forgot to mention, she was also firing a grenade launcher at the Deathstalker, shaking the ground like an earthquake.

Jaune personally had to give her supposed partner some credit. The raven-haired magenta-eyed boy seemed exasperated at the girl's antics, though he too was on the Ursa's back. It was obvious it wasn't his intention. The Ursa collapsed to the ground and began to dissolve, and the ginger-girl poured as she kicked the black Grimm essence.

"Aw, it broke." She said, and Jaune couldn't help but laugh. Big mistake, he learned, in the form of a giant Deathstalker claw slamming into him and sending him into the ruins, crashing through several walls of ancient stone and trees. He flipped backwards and slid to a stop in a crouch, and he immediately ran back to join the fight. Ruin appeared and he rode him towards the Deathstalker, watching as the raven-haired boy began running circles around the Grimm, confusing it while also shooting it in its eyes.

The beast roared, and soon Ruby, Weiss, Blake, Yang, and the red-haired girl from earlier all pitched in. Attacks in all different forms bombarded the Deathstalker's bone armor, creating large cracks. Jaune's eyes locked onto a particular crack after he residue of a pink explosion dissipated. The crack was just large enough for his sword to fit through. He grinned.

Ruin charged head on into the Deathstalker's head, exploding into a raging inferno, blinding the beast while Jaune jumped onto its back. He quickly holstered his scythes before unhooking Chaoseater from his back. His skin turned to stone and fired erupted from his flesh, and Chaoseater plunged itself into the crack in the Deathstalker's bone armor.

Jaune roared as he pushed the sword farther in, and with a bright flash of aura, hundreds of orange aura-swords erupted from the Deathstalker's body, sending black Grimm essence flying everywhere. The Deathstalker shrieked one last time as it died, before it collapsed to the ground and began to fade.

Jaune pulled his sword from the beast's carcass, and flicked it to the side, cleansing it of Grimm filth before hooking it onto his back. He grinned as Ruby came rushing up to him, speed semblance and all.

He looked to the sky as the adrenaline from the battle faded. The day was looking bright.

 **Vale; Beacon Academy: Auditorium...**

Jaune winced at the sheer volume of the noise in the auditorium. How loud must the students be? Surely they realized that screaming and whistling was unnecessary? It was unlikely, as Jaune winced as the student next to him whistled in a high pitch once again. He very nearly punched the guy, but refrained from doing so. Such thoughts were below him. All he had to do was restrain the fist that currently clenched itself at his side.

Team Cardinal, consisting of the orange-haired boy that seemed hell-bent on picking on Jaune earlier as well as some other boys Jaune did not care to recall, walked off the stage after they were formed. Suddenly, his face, as well as Ruby's, the raven-haired boy's and the ginger-haired girl's appeared on the large screen. He read the names underneath them.

' _Lie Ren and Nora Valkyrie. Hm... I don't suppose she's related to_ that _Valkyrie, is she?_ ' Jaune wondered, but shook it off as Ozpin began to speak again.

"Would Jaune Arc, Ruby Rose, Lie Ren, and Nora Valkyrie please come up to the stage?"

The four aforementioned students stood up and walked up to the front, well, except for Nora, she skipped to the front. As they walked up the stairs to the stage applause rang out through the auditorium, nearly deafening Jaune due to his better-than-average senses. The applause died down as Ozpin raised the microphone to his lips. "You four have collected the pawn pieces, and shall now be known as team RNJR (Ranger), led by Jaune Arc."

Jaune stood absolutely gobsmacked. Him? A leader? He almost laughed. Only on the day that Death beds a woman. Jaune almost thought he misheard Ozpin's words until the man himself came up to him and extended his hand out to him.

"Congratulations, Jaune. May you lead your team well." Ozpin said to him, only audible to Jaune over the applause. Ruby nudged him with her elbow after he shook the headmaster's hand, and he looked to her. She was smiling.

"Oh! Beacon is going to be so much fun!" Jaune heard Nora exclaim.

He found himself unable to disagree.

 **Later...**

Jaune cursed under his breath as he fumbled with the scroll. Each member of their team had been given one, but unlike them, Jaune had absolutely no experience with said devices. It was evidently shown by how he struggled to even open it up to its hand-held mode. Ruby and Nora were giggling, and even Ren seemed to find amusement in Jaune's plight, much to the Horseman Successor's chagrin.

He soon found Ruby's hands plucking the device out his hands and with a simple push of a button, opening it up. Jaune blushed, gratefully accepting it back from the smirking red reaper and tapping it against the panel to their dorm room. The door unlocked with a click, and he pushed it open.

He was immediately off-put by how open the room was. The space wasn't bad, per se, but it made Jaune a little uncomfortable. He'd lived in a small cave high up in the Keeper's Peak, where Death and his siblings all stayed. Though, he hadn't seen much of Fury nor Strife during his eight-year tenure at the Peak, he had been strictly told not to enter their rooms. He imagined they were just as small as his, after all, there wasn't much space in the Peak.

The dorm room, however, was probably thrice as large as his old room. The room was very wide, the large window in the center of the wall adjacent to the door provided plenty of light, and even the ceiling was a bit high. The openness of the room made Jaune a little... homesick, he supposed. He longed for his simple cot in the corner, and his wooden table on the side of his room where he studied the tales of War and the modern school curriculum.

Instead of the spartan furnishings, Beacon left no holds barred, providing four beds, multiple bookshelves that were already filled with books, and even a large desk to the left of the door with more than enough space for four people. If he were being honest, Jaune would say that this was more a suite than a dorm.

But then again, who he was he to say? He'd never been in a suite.

He turned to look at his teammates' reactions. They seemed just as awed as he was, and it took them a few seconds to finally get moving. Their luggage had already been delivered to their room, and lay in a neatly organized pile in the middle of the room. They got to work separating their belongings, and soon enough their next obstacle presented itself.

Sleeping arrangements.

"Perhaps we should Ren and me sleep on one side, while Nora and you sleep on the other?" Jaune suggested to Ruby, who frowned.

"But we should stick with our partners! I'm saying we should you and me sleep on the right, and Nora and Ren sleep on the left!" Ruby countered, which Jaune had to raise an eyebrow at.

"Surely it is unacceptable for people of our age to sleep beside the opposite gender?"

Ruby blushed, but shook her head. "But then the two people in the middle will be a boy and a girl, isn't that sleeping next to each other?"

Jaune paused at that. "Hm... yes, you would be right..."

Their little banter was broken when they heard the creaking of a bed, and they turned to see that Ren and Nora had claimed the two beds on the left.

"I want this one! Weee!" Nora exclaimed, bouncing on the far left bed. Ren nodded to her before unpacking his belongings, which consisted of... multiple copies of his current wear?

"Ren? May I ask you a question?"

Ren turned to Jaune with a raised eyebrow.

"Yeah, sure."

"Why do you have multiple copies of your current attire?"

Ren shrugged. "I like this outfit. It's very comfortable and isn't restricting at all."

"But... do you not have sleepwear?" Jaune asked, to which Ren nodded.

"I do. Here."

Ren pulled out a simple green long sleeved shirt, as well as a pair of seemingly very baggy green cotton pants. There was even a green nightcap pinched between his fingers as well.

Jaune nodded, before going over to his belongings, or rather, his only belonging. He set his black rucksack on his bed and began taking out its contents; his first knife tucked safely in its sheathe, three books that told of the deeds of Strife, Fury, and Death, a small case that held five small vials each of health and wrath potions, as well as a small journal that told of his own adventures.

First order of business were the potions. He opened the wooden case and downed a wrath potion, instantly regenerating his aura to the max. He shuddered at the small surge of energy the blue concoction always gave the user, until it faded away after a couple of seconds. Ren seemed to notice the strange liquid, and sensed his leader's aura regenerate to the max instantly.

"Jaune, what was that?" He asked. Jaune turned to him.

"What is it that you are referring to?"

Ren pointed at the now empty vial in Jaune's hand. "That drink you just had. What was it?"

Jaune's eyes lit up in understanding and he turned his body towards Ren to fully explain. "This is a wrath potion. This concoction regenerates one's aura in a single instant."

Ren's eyes widened at that, and he walked over to examine the little blue vials, as well as the green ones. "And what about these?"

"The green potions are health potions. They heal all wounds and injuries, though the process is very painful, as it also happens within a single instant."

"What are they made of?" Ren inquired, holding up one vial of each color. They seemed to be very thick liquids, as they didn't dance like water when shaken.

"Hm... if I remember correctly it is crafted through a special process involving aura... I believe it consists of a type of aura-containing liquid, though I might be mistaken," Jaune explained, uncertainty in his voice. "I was never shown how to make these potions. My master gave me my own supply, though he did mention that only the Keepers could ever make them..."

"Keepers? Your master is a Keeper?" Ren asked, surprised.

Jaune nodded. "Yes, he is, and so too are his siblings. I hope that one day I will inherit the title as well."

Ren patted his leader's shoulder. "A noble goal, indeed. I'm sure that day will come."

Sapphire eyes looked up to magenta accompanied by a sad smile.

"Keepers are both paragons of justice and violence, seeking peace through intervention with force. I doubt my master would agree with the notion that Keepers are 'noble'. They are brutal, far more so than a Huntsman ever will be," Jaune said as he turned away. "So, would you still encourage me to follow such a twisted, contradictory path?"

He waited for an answer.

He never got one.

 **A/N: Okay! Done! Dear goodness this took a while to write. Not even taking into account my arm, I was having a lot of trouble writing the fight scene. Hopefully it's good, but to me I'm really not sure about it. Oh well, I leave judgment to you. Anyway, I've gotta go back to working on Division of Duties, and probably this story's fourth chapter as well.**

 **IU13, signing out!**


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